A Street Car Names Desire Essay

A Street Car Named Desire deals with a culture clash between the Old South’s â€Å"plantation† mentality (priding itself on false pretenses) and the New South’s relatively uncivilized, yet real, grip on reality. The two characters who come to represent this tension are Blanche and Stanley Kowalski. Blanche advertises herself as a champion of â€Å"Southern Honor. † This entails an unfaltering dedication to virtue and culture. These are not, however, driving factors in her life but only mask her alcoholism and delusions of grandeur. By contrast, Stanley is an industrial worker who acts on habit and structure. Tennessee Williams juxtaposes illusion and reality by depicting the antagonistic relationship between the two by consistently employing symbolism. Blanche is constantly escaping the realities of life by retreating into her own fabrications. Her plummet into a delusional world begins when her beloved husband reveals himself to be gay and, soon after, shoots himself. She falls into a spiral of affairs after this event in a search to find emotional satisfaction and to reaffirm her womanhood. She ignores the obvious detrimental effect of her intimacies because all she wants is to be happy again: to be loved. Blanche physically escapes the reality of her life by leaving Belle Reve and Laurel to go to her sister’s home in New Orleans. Here, she misrepresents who she is and enters another relationship where she recreates her identity. When confronted about her lies, Blanche explains that she lies because she refuses to accept the hand fate has dealt her: I don’t want realism. I want magic! Yes, yes, magic! I try to give that to people. I misrepresent things to them. I don’t tell truth, I tell what ought to be truth. And if that is sinful, then let me be damned for it! (Williams, 34) Lying to herself and to others allows her to make life appear as she thinks it should be rather than as it is. Her final, deluded happiness (as her sister and Stanley commit her to an insane asylum) shows her acceptance that illusion is an adequate reality, but it also shows reality’s inevitable triumph. The driving force of reality, embodied by Stanley Kowalski, quickly dismantles all the falsities Blanche comes to represent. He is a practical man firmly grounded in the physical world who disdains fabrications. He finds meaning only in the primitive and straightforward: â€Å"There’s something downright bestial about him! †¦ He acts like an animal, has animal’s habits! †¦ Yes, something ape-like about him† (71). An animal would not create an alternate reality for a situation but would act according to the real, harshness of life in order to ensure its own survival. Stanley’s animal habits can be looked at as an appreciation only for tangible truths. In the end, Stanley succeeds in debunking all the false images Blanche created about herself. He goes out of his way to reveal Blanche’s past and then flaunts it in a crude, insensitive way: â€Å"Take a look at yourself here in a worn-out Mardi Gras outfit, rented for 50 cents from some rag-picker†¦ Do you know that I’ve been on to you from the start, and not once did you pull the wool over this boy’s eyes?†¦ Ha ha! Do you hear me? Ha ha ha† (67). Stanley again asserts his bestial tendency, but this time to show his dominance. When he proceeds to physically rape her, he metaphorically strips her of the false reality she created. Williams uses symbolism to show that Blanche is trapped in a life of delusion. The Varsouviana Polka and the use of light are reoccurring symbols that elude to her disconnect with reality. The Polka is the music that played the night her husband committed suicide. Blanche says that it ends only after she hears the sound of a gunshot in her head. It plays at various points in the play, symbolising this event that triggered her mental decline. Whenever a situation gets too â€Å"real,† Blanche firmly believes she hears the Varsouviana, panics, and looses her grip on reality. Also, throughout the play, Blanche avoids appearing in direct, bright light, especially in front of Mitch: â€Å"And turn that over-light off! Turn that off! I won’t be looked at in this merciless glare†(45). It is clear she avoids the lights in efforts to conceal the reality of her age and fading beauty. Symbolically, Blanche avoids light in order to prevent Mitch from seeing her for who she is. She, once again, retreats into her own world of illusion. Blanche is never able to be looked at â€Å"in the light† and exposed. She never faces reality. Both Stanley and Blanche have a hard time relating to the other gender without sexual implications. The difference is that Stanley is upfront about this â€Å"animalistic† behavior towards women, while Blanche tries to paint herself as above the primitive nature of her sexual impulses. We can call one approach realistic and the other delusional, but it doesn’t change the fact that both characters approach interactions in a sexual way. What does this say about the nature of what is real and what isn’t? Williams seems to draw an ambiguous line. This implies that reality and illusions coexist in our lives, and what we choose to label our views and actions is just a matter of perspective.

Tissue Donations

There are thousands of burn victims awaiting donations of human tissue to help meet critical needs in reconstructive surgery. My current case #49 regards the selling of human tissue donations. It’s a complicated situation where a few medical centers have acquired a partnership with a biotechnological company called Ardias Corporation. Ardias wants to create a tissue bank to help facilitate researchers with disease-specific tissue that will provide a link to accurate genetic sequence with diseases such as cancer. Ardias plans to supply a standard plan and, prior to surgery, patients will be asked if they would like to donate tissue samples. Surgeons will not be notified of consents and the patients will be securely protected of all information. Hospitals will sell the tissue to Ardias then in turn, Ardias will sell the patient information to biomedical researchers. The selling of human tissue is an ethical practice because it can facilitate better diagnosis and treatment of specific diseases. Human tissue plays an important role in medicine. They are used to help diagnose illness and to treat conditions. For example, a specific tissue such as bone marrow is transplanted into patients suffering from leukemia. In addition, companies such as â€Å"livestrong  Ã¢â‚¬  and the â€Å"Susan G.  Komen Foundation† do support the selling of human tissue. They generally state that it makes it possible for better drug development to help cancer patients. â€Å"Since we will all die someday, thinking about how we want our remains to be handled is something we should consider† (Comparini, 2003). Curing diseases is vital for anyone who has one. In the article I read it talks about the difference it has made and how you can go about the whole process of donating your tissue. This gives thousands of people the opportunity to heal or have some type of reconstructive surgery to improve their appearance and give them life again. Medicine has come along way and more people are living longer. In essence donating tissue can do the exact same thing. Another fascinating thing about donating tissue is that it contributes to the Human Genome Project (HGP). â€Å"HGP is the international, collaborative research program whose goal was the complete mapping and understanding of all the genes of human beings† (An overview of the human genome project, 2010). This gives us an idea or where our ancestry immigrated from and possibly what other nationalities we could be related to. They have two sources of how they receive their human tissue. One is through a surgical procedure and the other is through postmortem patients. HGP is a â€Å"transformative textbook of medicine, with insights that will give health care providers immense new powers to treat, prevent and cure disease. â€Å"(An overview of the human genome project, 2010) Surprisingly you wouldn’t expect that human tissue would play a big role in the program. One of the most interesting things about the DNA mapping of human beings is the fact that we are all unique individuals, yet we are so much alike. Human beings turn out to be over 99. 99% the same. An overview of the human genome project, 2010). All the millions of genes that make up the genetic code of each person on earth the things that make us different are less than 1% of 1% of the genes. (An overview of the human genome project, 2010). It is interesting to see what DNA can tell us. HGP is good because of the information it provides for us an entire human species. This project has direct impact on individuals with genetic causes of mental retardation and specific diseases. With it, scientists can study genes that control the way we develop or cause disease. In essence the selling of human tissue is an innovative way to produce medicine and treatments. It’s a profitable corporation where everyone is happy even the donor knowing they made an effort to help another person with a chance at life. Like I mentioned earlier there are people awaiting and praying they receive human tissues to reconstruct third degree burns that may cover up seventy to ninety percent o there entire body. This is definitely an ethical practice and should be taken more into consideration because it helps out tremendously. References http://journalism.berkeley.edu/projects/transplants/about.html http://www.genome.gov/12011238

Nursing journal article on lupus and alternative treatment Essay - 1

Nursing journal article on lupus and alternative treatment - Essay Example Lupus is a disease whereby the immune systems of the body attacks the normal and healthy body tissues; thus contributing to various complications such as swelling, damage of the skin, joints and kidneys or heart. Therefore, the article addresses about the issue of lupus and the alternative treatment measures for the disease. The author approaches the problem through caring out statistical analysis and reveals the case study survey of some patients who employs alternative treatment approaches for relieving pain. The author approaches the problem through conducting study analysis in order to obtain effective results about lupus disease and the alternative treatments. First, the author employed varied case studies, which include people who have been diagnosed with lupus and reveals the ideas provided by doctors on the process of carrying out research on this disease. For instance, the author reveals some study analysis conducted by Garbett, who was diagnosed with lupus (Kertesz, 2012). Garbett and other physicians from the associate fellowship program, Arizona University conducted the research study in order to determine the issues of lupus and the alternative treatment for this disease. The study carried out reveled that Garbett was able to cope up with the discomfort nature caused by lupus disease through eating of a balanced diet. According to Kertesz (2012), Garbett followed proper diet by taking good carbohydrate, low fat levels, omega-3 fatty acids and enough fruits. Secondly, the author carried out research study concerning the issue of lupus and he thus found that consuming enough vitamins, herbs and visiting the reflexologist provides relief for the disease. Although the study results revealed that these are not effective herbal medicines, they can relief the pain. The case study of Beck Brown and Garbett reveals the effective medicines for relieving pain. However, there are other complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies offered to

Peer Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Peer Review - Essay Example Though a good paper, the author falls a victim of some of the highlighted mistakes, and, therefore, the quality of the paper has in a way been compromised. In this document, I will review the work so as to analyze its strengths and weaknesses and give my opinion on the nature of the work as a whole. This author, as I had hinted earlier, has done very much to address the points of the prompt. The author discussed all the points except one. The point that is explicitly noted to missing is where the author was required to state whether he/she is a monist, dualist, pluralist, an idealist or a materialist and the reason for being one. This point was one of the primary requirements of the paper, and its omission implies that the quality of the paper, going by the journal requirements, is relatively small. The author, according to my assessment, scored relatively high in the explication of some of the arguments offered by the philosophers and relatively little in others. I would give him the highest score in his elucidation of the arguments of such philosophers as Thales, Democritus, Heraclitus, Plato, Aristotle, and Descartes. The only part where I would have given him a relatively lower score is the explanation that he gives to Pythagoras’ philosophy; it is not convincing at all. The student should have given more information about Pythagoras, for example, he defended pure monotheism and made pupils go through various degrees before he could allow them personal contact (The life and philosophy of Pythagoras). He literarily looks at some of the objects like fire, water, and grass in page 2 of the paper and hurriedly concludes that they are not made up of numbers, and then ends up finding that the philosophy is wrong. He fails to give it the inner eye so as to understand what t he philosopher meant by stating that the universe is made up of numbers. I find his argument on this

Comic Books in America and Japan Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Comic Books in America and Japan - Case Study Example However, children are also the most sensitive group within the society because they are at a developmental stage that is highly susceptible to influence. Moreover, children are also the most active in leisure activities because they require socialisation to develop intellectually. The development of children is dependent on the presented values within the family and the environment in which they live, with different societies presenting different traditions. The group relations and activities that children engage in during their leisure time are particularly influential on their developmental attributes (Turow 2011, p. 162). An excellent example of this is the influence of comic books. Comic books are either locally created or imported and often follow a similar fictional plot that children can identify with easily. Comic book popularity has recently been boosted by advances in technology, as children can now access comic plots through the internet on their computers and/or mobile ph ones. In both America and Japan, the increased trend of comic books use in children is obvious, although the regions depict a variation in child behaviour in response to comic books. Thus, this paper will present a discussion of the phenomena in both countries, and offer some comparison to show how comic books affect children intellectual development as well as on aspects pertaining to their social behaviours. Japanese Manga and American Comics Overview Since the Second World War, America and Japan have experienced similar developments, and have participated in a great deal of cultural exchange. For the purpose of this paper, the common prevalence of the comic book in the two countries will be addressed. In America, the term is ‘comic books’, and in Japan, it is ‘manga’ (Burton, 2008, p. 3). Comics were developed in America in the thirties, at which time the super hero aspect gained popularity. Since then, comics have influenced the creation of Japanese man ga, which has borrowed heavily from such super hero fictions as Batman and Superman. In both countries, the fictional worlds created have offered entertainment to an increasingly broad audience of children. Indeed, both comics and manga are significant to the publication industry (Bresler & Thompson 2002, p. 51). Japanese production of manga has been larger as compared to the American comic industry, occupying forty per cent of total publication production in Japan (Schodt, 1996, p. 19). This is because the composition of manga is dynamic and has grown to cover an increased scope as compared to comics. Interest has therefore increased among consumers, who have incorporated Japanese manga into their entertainment. This has prompted the publishers of American comic books to seek developments in plot that increase the creativity and involvement of the youth and children. However, Japanese manga continues to have a greater influence as compared to comic books because, unlike their comic s, the target audience is much wider. Considering these differences in audience reach, despite the similarities of the manga and comic book genres, the influence on children in Japan as compared to in America has been recorded to vary. This may be related to differences in plot development in the stories and the reflections they offer of societal norms (Burton, 2008, p. 3; Schodt 1996, p. 20-22). Comics among American Children In the 1930s, when

Career opportunities- Sports information director and Media relations Essay

Career opportunities- Sports information director and Media relations coordinator - Essay Example should possess good verbal and written communications, interpersonal relations, good presentation skills, and ability to work a flexible schedule (Gresham, 2015). According to Gresham (2015), to become a sports information director, one needs to pursue a degree in marketing, communication or sports. Further, one needs to get certification from the College Sports Information Directors of America to show that one has knowledge and acumen to succeed. The media relations coordinator acts as the principal point of contact for all public and media relations efforts. They engage in shaping and propagating the broad communication strategies that will influence the audiences (Loughborough University, 2010). The entry level of a media relations officer includes a bachelor’s degree in communication, public relations or any other related field. One also needs knowledge and experience with media monitoring software, online media databases, excellent attention to details, and proficiency in computer skills, ability to work independently, excellent written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills and good networking skills (Marketing Schools.org., 2012). To become a public relations coordinator, one needs to go through the general education. The person should have the ability to communicate fluently both in writing and in speech. One should also get training in marketing, communications and writing. Additionally one should be networked by joining the Public Relations Student Society of America. One should also get to go for internships while in school to gain the hands-on knowledge (Marketing Schools.org.,

HRIS Implementation Plan in a middle-sized company Essay

HRIS Implementation Plan in a middle-sized company - Essay Example In many cases, errors occur when a person is entering data manually into databases. Data cleansing is thus crucial since some errors are unavoidable. However, automation of data like in the case of HRIS results in errors and intricacies that are not easily corrected. Additionally, attempts to locate and correct may result in complication of the problem. A good example is when dealing with data regarding the employees’ employment history, which is interrelated to other employment aspects such as pay rate and positions held. Attempts to make correction in one of the field might result in automatic alteration of data in other categories. To overcome this problem, it is important to implement an application that acts as an interphase between the different fields to enable data transfer from one database or application to another. This ensures that employees’ data entry is only done once and transferred across different databases without making alterations. Additionally, the application should be capable of linking employees’ data to the security profile to ensure that only the right people make changes on employe es’ data. Process 2 or tracking employee job performance entails enabling the HRIS system to evaluate employees more quickly and efficiently and creating a uniform system for employee system. It is important that managements define what performance is for the different job specifications. After 1determining performance, the organizations should set goals to direct the managers and employees. A salient factor that would jeopardize implementation of process two is unclear alignment of employee’s goals with the corporate culture and goals. To prevent this, the HR department should concur with the management to ensure the goals set are attainable. In some instances, the set goals are unrealistic and some employers end up blaming the employees for underperformance. It is thus important to

The report of the application of systemic and complexity thinking in Essay

The report of the application of systemic and complexity thinking in organizational development - Essay Example The author’s further examination reveals that some leaders embrace and easily adapt to a liberal manner of thought in which new concepts and ideas are developed while others are stuck to a conservative way of thought or liberal thinking. The organizational leaders that are stuck to the conservative way of thought have no interest in understanding the systemic and complexity of thinking. This lack of interest prevents them from adopting the thinking strategy and consequentially, they cannot be able to enjoy the benefits of liberal thinking since they are stuck to making decisions which are on the basis of conventional linear thinking. If a person wants to adopt the systemic and complex way of thinking, they need to ask themselves some several questions. Some of the questions that the author has presented as very important in asking oneself in order to help a client or person to appreciate the limitations of linear mechanistic thinking are; how does the organization view itself within its existing environment?; what is its purpose; what are its challenges?; how are its relationships with others?; what is being done and what is not being done?; among others that will be pointed out later in the essay. It is also important that clients not only understand what systemic and complex thinking entails, but also get to possess the necessary knowledge and skills to help them practice this skill even with the absence of a consultant. Analysis of Opinions The author emphasizes on the need of understanding organizational development and its work and how systemic and complexity thinking can be applied in real terms. The consulting work of organizational development creates an opportunity for applying systemic and complexity thinking to practical issues. Consultants describe their work as giving help to people that work in organization in order to achieve the results that they are all aiming for. However, this is only but a theoretical definition. Learning and personal development processes can be established through effective organizational development efforts. Organizational development is therefore aimed at implementing change through a better understanding of how complex, adaptive systems operate. The relation of this to leadership is that for a leader to initiate change, they first have to take into consideration the reactions of the organization and members of the organization as a whole. This is because change has the capability of enhancing the performance of an organization in either a positive or a negative way. This therefore leads to changes in the cultural behaviors of people within the organization. Process consultation is a branch of work in organizational development. Through this process, a client is able to understand the process activities that are taking place in their environment and get to know how to act upon them. This process as part of systemic and complexity thinking helps the client and the organization to have a bette r relationship with each other. It also helps the client to get in to a place of reflective learning and personal discovery. Therefore, in essence, the leadership, through process consultation, is able to build the client and also build their organization. They build the client since they give the client a chance to provoke their thinking to one of complexity.As pointed out earlier, this helps in improving the consultant-client relationship. When the bond between these

Case analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Case analysis - Essay Example It is amongst the top fifteen companies in the United Kingdom. It’s past financial performance has been quiet commendable and its spread of operations world over. The biggest strength of the organization laid in its successful acquisitions through which it derived internal development. Sound financial control of the organization ever since its inception has been one of its hallmarks. More and more hotels were acquired as time passed. Despite having innumerable complex intricate operations, the structure of the organization was unbureaucratic. Their chief financial manager Joseph believed in trading purchase assets; a strategy that proved to be very effective for them.The main premise behind this was to use cash flow generated from the acquisition to cover debts. This meant good management would increase cash flow for the company while covering debts. John acquired those assets he believed would rise in cost owing to inflation and would help generate significant cash flow in future. Most of the acquisitions barring that with Express had been on good friendly terms. Even after acquisitions, the business was allowed to run in their own styles without a lot of interference from the top management. Joseph never intervened deeply into the running affairs of the business. There were lots of opportunities all the way from the beginning. Acquisitions kept taking place as went the chance to do so turn in. The opportunities were executed none bureaucratically. Joseph’s only focus was on the fact that the existing cash flow would be able to cover any debts while operations were feasible. If everything fit the bill for him, he would then go ahead. It was with this idea in his mind that he acquired brewer Truman, Han bury, Buxton (THB). Joseph realized that the breweries were attractive in-city spots. He further cashed in on the curativeness of this offer when he saw an opportunity in â€Å"Winey Mann† as a follow up on THB. This was a huge step for

Organisational Change Case Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Organisational Change Case Report - Essay Example However, the restructuring process resulted in loss of customer loyalty and negative publicity. In the current study, various models for organisational change have been studied and the best model for Qantas change management has been selected. This model has been used in various applications in order to facilitate better communication and increase motivation as well as employee engagement. The model is also helpful in determining the various strategies through which the business can be improved and made sustainable. Conclusions helped in wrapping up the entire report with important points. Recommendations have been given in terms of the failure of earlier strategies as well as future strategies, which can be an added advantage to the current change management process. Contents 1. Introduction 3 2. Critical Evaluation of Diagnostic Models 3 2.1 Open system Model 3 2.2 Congruence Model 4 2.3 Burke-Litwin Model 5 2.4 Choice of Diagnostic Model for Qantas 6 3. Application of selected mod el to Qantas 6 3.1 Application in the formal organizational system 7 3.2 Application in informal organization 8 3.3 Application in Employee management 8 4. Conclusion 9 5. Recommendations 9 References 11 1. Introduction Qantas is an airline carrier in Australia. The airline carries 65 percent share of the domestic market of Australia and around 19 percent of international passengers travelling in and out of the nation. Sydney airport is the major hub (Qantas, 2013a). The company saw a huge decline in their profit margin in the year 2012 when profits went negative (Qantas, 2013b). As a result, the management decided to bring about huge restructuring in their organization as well as strategies. The airline carrier has been involved in organizational restructuring as a result of the increasing economic downturn and loss of revenue. The organization was in news because of its massive reduction in management staffs and employee layoffs as a fundamental review process (Paraskevas, 2006). Through this organizational change management process, the company hopes to cope up with the ongoing economic challenges and revive its organization from the present global financial downturn. The objective of this report is to analyze the change management process occurring in the organization. The study will involve use of various diagnostic tools for organizational change management and identify the tools best suitable for the organization. Literature review as well as organizational practice will be considered while reviewing and identifying recommendations and selecting appropriate methods. 2. Critical Evaluation of Diagnostic Models 2.1 Open system Model It is an organizational model which recognizes that an organization exists in the framework of a bigger environment which affects its performance and in turn also affects the way an organization interacts with the change. According to this model, firms operate within external environment, taking specific inputs and transformin g those using technical and social processes (Sullivan, 2004). The outputs are returned to this environment and used as feedback for firm’s functioning. Open system model can be described on the basis of its various properties described below; Environment: Open system environment involve people and organization exchanging resources and information with the environment.

Empire State Building Essay Example for Free

Empire State Building Essay The Empire State building is one of the landmarks of New York. The overall design is very sleek and simple yet it managed to stand out from the other skyscrapers in the city. Its â€Å"low key Art deco style† combined with the â€Å"steel frame and steel claddings† have distinctly set it apart from the various urban elements of the city (Matthews). The Palace of Versailles in France is a clear example of Baroque architecture. Its opulent interior and grandiose design epitomized the essence of Baroque which is highly ornate and complicated. From the landscape to the huge massive structures, Versailles has exquisitely exuded splendor and luxury (Walton 161-173). The Petronas Towers in Malaysia is considered as one of the tallest buildings in the world. The design of the buildings was intended to showcase the cultural influences of the Malaysians. It used â€Å"Islamic arabesques and repetitive geometries characteristic† which reflected Islam architecture which is the dominant religion in the country (Skyscraper. org). Works Cited Matthews, Kevin. â€Å"Empire State Building. † 2008. Greatbuildings. com. 5 March 2009 http://www. greatbuildings. com/buildings/Empire_State_Building. html â€Å"The Petronas Towers. † n. d. Skyscraper. org. 5 March 2009 http://www. skyscraper. org/TALLEST_TOWERS/t_petronas. htm Walton, Guy. Louis the X1V Versailles. Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press, 1986.

The resource curse in myanmar

The resource curse in myanmar Introduction Myanmar (Burma) has distinguished diversity in both its ethnicity and geography. Myanmar has been ruled by the formidable military junta that has contributed to raising many problems in the social, political and economic spheres. Myanmar is infamous for the worlds longest civil war, dire poverty, poor public health and systematic human rights violations. Especially, the oppression of the military regime against some indigenous groups and pro-democracy demonstrators have been done in cruel manners such as forced displacement, arbitrary detentions, rapes, torture and massacres. In the pro-democracy demonstration in 1988, as many as 3,000 unarmed protestors were killed by the Myanmar army (Human Rights Watch, 1989). The regime has maintained tight control over all facets of economy and society, including the countrys natural resources. Myanmar has plenty of natural resources: natural gas, petroleum, timber and valuable minerals such as gold, tin, rubies and jade. In contrast with the countrys abundance of natural resources, Myanmars development has never been on the right track; the outcomes are poor economic growth, extensive poverty, military dictatorship and prolonged civil war. In reality, the abundance of natural resources in Myanmar has contributed to extensive human right abuses and environmental degradation: forced labor, displacement, deforestation, soil contamination, etc. According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the military regime of Myanmar spends at least 40 percent of its national budget on military expenditures, in contrast with the indiscreetly low allocation of the health budget (only 0.4 percent), regardless of the exploding public health crisis (Taisamyone 2007). The military junta has exploited billions of dollars from the national revenue to fuel the military force; in other words, the money that was supposed to enrich the Myanmar citizens has been used for the military activity to control or oppress the citizens. The situation of Myanmar ― a paradoxical outcome of natural resource abundance ― can be true of the â€Å"resource curse† that has been addressed for years in a multitude of researches of countries development. The term resource curse is used to describe the paradox that dependence on natural resources, especially in developing countries often negatively affects the economic growth, democratization and promotion of human rights. As a matter of fact, many countries rich in natural resources have failed to develop and remain in miserable situations. (Humphreys 2007) It is well known that the economic instability in a resource-rich country is caused by an economic concept called â€Å"Dutch disease† ― a countrys currency value is raised by the export of natural resources, and it will makes the other domestic industries uncompetitive in the other export activities due to the inflationary exchange rate (Humphreys 2007). In addition, it is now widely agreed that the curse of natural resources degrades the quality of governance, and as a result, natural resources often provokes civil war (Collier 2007). This paper seeks to analyze the formation of the resource courses in Myanmar, by taking up the key issues of the primary resources that have largely influenced the states condition. The paper especially focuses on the relation of the parties involved with the natural resource issues in the context of economical, ecological and social aspects, rather than focusing on the theory of economic science such as the Dutch disease. Also, this paper will provide some suggestions of how to resolve the Myanmars resource curse from a point of view of sustainable development and environmental scarcity. Natural Gas Myanmars natural gas exports in the fiscal year of 2007-08 was 2.6 billion U.S dollars, and account for 43 percent of the total exports, according to the report from Myanmars Customs Department (Yao 2008). The largest of Myanmars industrial projects is the Yanada project. The Yanada pipeline was bridged from the offshore area to the Thai border with a 60-kilometer-long route across southern Burma. During the construction, the Burmese military regularly conscripted villagers in the pipeline area to impose forced labor. The villagers were afflicted with extensive human rights violations including torture, rape and extrajudicial killings by the military junta (ERI 2008). Environmental degradation during the construction and operation period is also serious problem. Offshore drilling creates massive toxic wastes that are usually dumped into the ocean. Both the disposal of toxic waste and the drilling cause a hazardous effect on the wet lands, fish and habitats, and pollute water supplies (ALTSEAN-Burma 2009). There is another serious problem in natural gas projects other than human rights abuses and environmental degradation. The military expenditure of the military junta dramatically increased due to the Yanada project. According to the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Myanmars military budget was estimated at $900 million U.S. of the total budget of $2.3 billion. The Yanada project provided the largest portion of the revenue, and at least 50 % of it would flow directly to the military regime (CIA Factbook cited in ERI 2008). The natural gas and multinational corporations have not benefited the local population at all but they have contributed much to financing the military junta. There has been no threat from neighboring countries since the countys independence in 1948; the purpose of enforcing military rule is only to control or oppress its citizens. While Myanmar pours its huge budget into the military activities, the country is severely impoverished as one of the poorest countries in the world. Timber Aside from the natural gas industry, the timber industry also produces a significant profit in Myanmar. Because of its lucrative nature, especially in the variable teak, the military junta has overexploited the countrys forests. The extensive illegal logging is a huge problem, leading to the deforestation and the destruction of biodiversity. The forests covered 70% of Myanmars total land area at the time of its independence in 1948, but most independent estimates indicated that over half of the countrys forests were cut down by commercial logging operations as of 1998 (Dennis 1999). Deforestation contributes to massive soil erosion, temperature increase and flooding in the areas logged. Deforestation spoils the quality and availability of water and directly harms the local communities livelihood; farming is impossible in the land and a shortage of clean water undermines the health of the people. Not only that, forests are furthermore important for the indigenous people in their religious beliefs and practices. â€Å"Karen people in Lu Thaw Township are famous for their traditional beliefs related to forests†¦If there was no forest, there would be no rotational farming, plant diversity, and the specific cultural identity, traditional beliefs and values of the Karen would disappear.† (PKDS and KESAN 2004) In the peripheral part of the country, the ethnopolitical groups manage the logging industry for the benefit of .hard currency. The logging business provides both the military junta and the local ethnopolitical minorities with profit, and this has led to an incompatible relationship between them. The military junta started to monopolize the timber industry and forcibly removed ethnopolitical groups that managed some forest areas, such as Karen National Union States (KNU) that dealt with the logging business in the unreserved forest area of Karen State. The military junta has cut down forests indiscriminately whether they are reserved or unreserved. The military junta stripped the living environment and a significant source of income from the local communities. Thus, logging and political conflict are interrelated in the Karen State (PKDS and KESAN 2004). Dams The military junta has been enforcing the construction of dams along the Salween River for the sake of hydropower. In the dome sites, forced labor and human rights violations were regularly conducted by the Burmese military, as well as the construction of the natural gas pipeline construction described above. A series of dam constructions caused a threat of flood and water scarcity, and tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee to higher ground. Although the military junta once promised abundant electricity and water supplies along the dam sites, the local population has never received the benefit. On the contrary, local communities in the area, mainly Karenni ethnic people, have been suffering from the destruction of the environment and shortage of water, which have directly damaged both farming and fishing industries, and the local communities livelihood. One of four dams of the Salween River, the Weigyi Dam, flooded several times, extending over 640 square kilometers, and made 30,000 villagers homeless, submerging 28 towns in Karen State (KDRG 2006). Ongoing Civil War in Myanmar Myanmar has a long history of numerous civil wars due to the great diversity of the ethnic groups and the problematic politics of the military regime. Several ethnopolitical minorities had organized rebellion and fought simultaneously against the military regime to achieve their self-determination. Most of the ethnopolitical minorities, however, compromised on cease-fire agreements with the military regime in the end of 1980s, after an offer of the military regime that promised a part of the political rights for the combatant ethnopolitical groups. A few ethnopolitical groups such as the Karen National Union (KNU) and Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP) are still in combat against the military junta. Both the Karen and Karenni state have been severely oppressed by the military junta. In Karen State, the number of Internal Displaced Persons (IDPs), by forced displacement or relocation by military junta, counts over 157,000 since the end of 2002, and over 240 villages were destroyed or relocated (Human Rights Watch 2005). In Karenni State, more than 81,000 civilians, equivalent to 25 percent of the total population, were displaced and 267 villages were destroyed (Burma Issues 2008). Karen and Karenni State are the locations that are troubled with some of the largest numbers of IDPs in Myanmar. The cruel oppressions of the military junta against Karen and Karenni definitely caused a grievance that incites the ethnopolitical groups to take up arms against the military junta. In some cases, those oppressions are closely linked with the interest of natural resources. As a reason for displacement, there are two main reasons: â€Å"conflict induced displacement†Ã¢â‚¬â€¢ a forced displacement induced as a result of conflicts in the area and â€Å"development induced displacement† ― a forced displacement for the purpose of development or exploitation of natural resource of the area (Burma Issues 2008). Karenni State is a very example of development induced displacement. â€Å"Karenni State a number of different development projects are being undertaken by the military junta including, mining, logging, hydro-electricity, industrial development and agriculture projects.† (Burma Issues 2008) The development project led the military junta set up military base along the construction sites, and forces extensive human rights abuses and causes environmental degradation. Massive forced displacement was done along both with its process and operation process (see Dams section in this paper). Also, there are several examples that conflicts were exacerbated over a right to control natural resources. One of the cease-fire groups, Karenni National Democratic Party (KNDP), was compelled to recruit into the military junta as the exchange condition for receiving the control of the local area. The KNDP participated in the Burmese troops in 1997 to attack a refugees shelter located in the side of Thai border. This means ceasefire groups fought against non-ceasefire groups, resulting in intra-ethnic conflicts. Moreover, the military junta granted control of areas and resources to the ethnopolitical groups who joined to attack non-ceasefire groups to raise a grievance among ethnopolitical groups. (KDRG 2006) Some displacement in Karen State was done for the purpose of seizing control of the dam, mining and logging sites, that is, the development induced displacement. However, the displacement of Karen State was triggered in reasons for conflict-induced displacement rather than development-induced displacement. Those conflicts can be regarded as the consequence of a series of oppression and development-induced displacement by the military junta (see Timbersection in this paper). The destruction of environment, livelihood, and cultural value of the ethnic people induced the KNU to take up arms against the military junta. As a result of prolonged numerous conflicts, the people in Karen State, especially the 157,000 IDPs, were severely victimized in both development-induced displacement and conflict-induced displacement. As the examples of Kanenni and Karen State, an abundance of natural resource have induced huge mount of cruel displacement and civil wars across the country, and it would be the body of the resource curse in Myanmar. Analysis from a Concept for Sustainable Development and Environmental Scarcity This section examines: 1) how the military junta, the body of Myanmars politics, is getting along with a major concept of sustainable development, 2) the relation between environmental scarcity and conflict, based on a academic theory. Promoting sustainable development is based on the three pillars: The social: this relates to human mores and values, relationship and institutions. The economic: this concerns the allocation and distribution of scarce of resources. The ecological: this involves the contribution of both the economic and the social and their effect on the environment and its resources. (Ekins 2000 cited in Banker 2006) For the social context, military junta has extensively violated human rights against the citizens, especially ethnopolitical group who live in the sites of natural resources. For the economic context, military junta has monopolized the profit of the resource to enforce their military capacity, intending to control over the population with the country. This resulted in the extremely poor economic growth of the country. For the ecological context, there have been a myriad of environmental degradations in any types of natural resource extraction (see sections of Natural Gas, Timber and Dam in this paper). Unflatteringly, the military junta has been doing the things in the opposite way of sustainable development. In the concept of sustainable development, scholars all agreed that social participation is an essential to promote sustainable development; making decision procedure should involve democracy with local communities (Banker 2006). In the case of Myanmar, the National League for Democracy gained the support from the majority of the country citizens in 1990 national election, and Aung San Suu Kyi was elected as the Prime Minister. However, the military junta demolished the election and refused the citizens to participate the national politics, by making military threats. In recent decades, environmental scarcity could plausibly generate some types of violent conflict in a country much dependent on environmental goods and services. One of the types refers to â€Å"Disputes arising directly from local environmental degradation caused, for instance, by factory emissions, logging, or dam† (Thomas and Homer 1999). For the relation between environmental scarcity and conflicts, some scientists adopt a process called reciprocal causation. As the causal steps show, Myanmars environmental degradation by military junta caused a significant environmental scarcity in the local communities, such the cases of Karen and Karenni State that is still in a situation of violent conflicts today. All the cases of Myanmar, described above in the paper, have proved that the military junta has contributing to ignoring the countrys sustainable development, and inducing to create violent conflict against local communities. In this perspective, it is absolutely important to address the Myanmars ethnopolitical conflicts, based on environmental issues. Conclusion Due to the combination of the bad governance and an abundance of the natural resources, Myanmar has lapsed into a miserable situation: poverty, poor economic growth, continuous civil wars, etc. These catastrophic outcomes are definitely attributable to the failure of the natural resource management by the military junta. Even the effort to establish a democratic state by the citizens was destroy by the injustice of the military junta. It is necessary to have further cooperation both within the country and out side of the country (international communities). The attitude of international communities against the military junta is controversial.Althoughinternational communities have imposedeconomicsanctionandlimittheir trading, this directly benefited the nonbearing countries such as China, Thailand, and India. As a result, the economic sanction has decreased the performance of the countrys economic growth; Myanmar has to sell their products in cheap price due to the lack of trade partners. Besides, the interest between China and Myanmar has hindered the use of Responsibility to Protect of United Nations Security Council. In any case, international communities have to immediately come up with another alternative to change the military junta. For the cooperation within the country, it is important to refer to the capacity of ethnopolitical minorities. Although some ethnopolitical minorities have some power to negotiate with the military junta, each group has their own policy and sometimes the policies among ethnopolitical minorities are incompatible. If there is a chance to overcome the power of the military regime, it is a time when all the ethnopolitical minorities and citizens unite their purpose for the democracy for whole nation, not pursuing each own political rights. Reference: ALTSEAN-Burma(Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma) (2009) KEY ISSUES ENVIRONMENT, Retrieved on 22nd January 2010 from http://www.altsean.org/Key%20Issues/KeyIssuesEnvironment.htm Collier, P. (2007) The Bottom Billion, Oxford: Oxford University Press Dennis, J. V. (1999) A REVIEW OF NATIONAL SOCIAL POLICIES Myanmar, Retrieved on 22nd January 2010 from http://www.mekonginfo.org/mrc_en/doclib.nsf/0/AE24021D05C497DDC725682E003722D4/$FILE/FULLTEXT.html Burma Issues (March 2008) Living Ghosts -The spiraling repression of the Karenni population under the Burmese military junta, Retrieved on 22nd January 2010 from http://www.burmalibrary.org/docs4/livingghosts.pdf EarthRights International (ERI) (April 2008) The Human Cost of Energy, Retrieved on 23rd January 2010 from http://www.earthrights.org/sites/default/files/publications/Human-Cost-of-Energy.pdf Humphreys, M. et al (2007) Escaping the Resource, New York: Curse Columbia University Press Human Rights Watch (1989) BURMA (Myanmar), Retrieved on January 22nd 2010 from http://www.hrw.org/legacy/reports/1989/WR89/Burma.htm Human Rights Watch; Vol. 17, No.4 (June, 2005). â€Å"They Came and Destroyed Our Village Again† The Plight of Internally Displaced Persons in Karen State: New York. Retrieved on 25th October, 2009 from http://www.ashleysouth.co.uk/files/Human_Rights_Watch_2005.pdf Karenni Development Research Group (KDRG) (2006) Dammed by Burmas Generals, Retrieved on 22nd January 2010 from http://www.khitpyaingnews.org/reports/Dammed%20by%20Burmas%20Generals.pdf Kramer T. (July, 2009) Neither War Nor Peace: The Future of the Cease-Fire Agreements in Burma, Transnational Institute. Retrieved on 25th October, 2009 from http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/documents/TNI_Burma_CeasefireAgreements.pdf Pan Kachin Development Society (PKDS) and Karen Environmental and Social Action Network (KESAN) (2004) Destruction and degradation of the Burmese Frontier forests, Amsterdam: Kaboem, Rerieved on 22nd January 2010 from http://www.aaa.htm Taisamyone (6th July, 2007) Editorial: Disproportionate military expenditure in Burma, Burma Digest, Retrieved on 22nd January, 2010 from http://burmadigest.wordpress.com/2007/07/06/editorial-disproportionate-military-expenditure-in-burma/ Thomas, D. and Homer, D (1999) Environment, Scarcity, and Violence, United Kingdom: Princeton University Press. Yao Amber (2008) Natural gas tops Myanmar exports in 2007-08, Xinhua News Agency, Retrieved on 22nd January 2010 from http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-06/15/content_8374394.htm

Problems Of Pakistani Education System

Problems Of Pakistani Education System Hamza Naeem Can you imagine what will happen with Pakistan if there is no improvement in the education system of Pakistan? Can this system will improve in future? Education is like a back bone for the development of a country. It is like a weapon through which everything can be corrected. The definition of education is the process of delivery of knowledge and becoming an educate person. According to the constitution of Pakistan, 1973 –Article 137-b â€Å"The state shall remove illiteracy and provide free and compulsory secondary education within minimum possible period†. Problems in education system should be eliminated to promote unity among men and women and offer a better quality atmosphere for learning. In Pakistan the major problem of education system is dual education system. Dual education means that study of students in different mediums. The poor students study in Urdu medium and the rich students in English medium. This create very problem. For Instance, when both rich and poor students enter into a mature life, the poor student face very difficult to pick the English language and the rich students pick the English language and answers very quickly. This create discriminants among the poor students. In many schools of Pakistan government have changed Urdu medium syllabus to English medium syllabus and most of educators in government schools are unaware of those English language which is written in the course also most of teachers are old there.so they do not teach the students properly as a result many of the students fail. Government should have either change the syllabus in Urdu language or rule in a young teachers who know English language properly. Gender discriminants is also another flaws of education system in Pakistan. The ratio of primary education for girls is less as compare to boys which is more concern able for the government. The growth of the private schools has been increase in Pakistan for the last few years. It is believed that Pakistan is the country which is facing a lot of gender discrimination. It creates a lot of gap among haves and have not’s. Lack of technical and scientific education is also the biggest flaws of Pakistani education system that have never been focused before. The main reason for this problem is that lack of technical and science teachers due to this reason students are un aware of technical scientific equipment’s and this creates a lot of problem in future when they enter into a live work places. Therefore, less technical and scientific education means low standard of education. The allocation of funds for education are very low. *In 2011-2012 it is near about 0.9 to 0.58 percentage of the total GDP. It should be near about 7% of the total GDP. At that budget grant, the illiteracy rate would not be decreased but increase day by day. The simple way to increase the budget of education federal and provincial government should decrease their expenditures and should spend this on the education budget to increase literacy rate. In numerous government schools the instructors are less educated and they do not teach the students properly. When the base of the child is not prospective then in future he will face lot of difficulties in many subjects. Those who does not know how to teach the students become instructor and they are not professionally educator because when they have no work to do they become to instructor. This shows that Pakistan have low criteria for education. Another problem of Pakistani education system is lack of respect of teachers. In Pakistan, there is no respect of teachers. If teacher beat any student in college or university then next day the student which is bitten by teacher beat him. It is noticed that, **In Karachi November 22, 2013 â€Å"The senior teacher of science faculty was beating at the hands of some activists of a major student organization†. Selection of subjects among students is one of the problems of education system especially in colleges. Some students do not select correct subjects in college and they fail. For example, when students enter in college life their parents force them to choose those subjects which their parents suggest and students do not take interest in those subjects and they do not read properly this causes a failures. Another flaws of Pakistani education system is regionally difference. The schools in province Baluchistan (largest province in its large area) are not well decorated and groomed as compare to province Punjab (largest province in its population).In Punjab there is a level of merit of education as compared to other provinces as they are fail to develop a good atmosphere for education. In FATA there is a low literacy rate of education. The literacy rate of education for women is extremely low as compare to men. There is a lack of good institutes in Pakistan. In our neighbor country like India have near about 1500 universities and in our country there are only 150 universities but some of these universities have no standard level. In many universities of Pakistan, there is only one main program which is engineering. Some of these universities are recognized with Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) and most of them are not recognized with PEC. This create very problem when students go to apply for a job they are rejected because their degree is not recognized with PEC. In the medical field of Pakistan there is lot of private institute and they receive lot of fee from their students. After completion of their MBBS private institutes provide no house jobs for their students and they have to do house job in government hospitals free of cost. Lack of government funds to educational institutes is the main problem of Pakistani education system. Sometime many universities in Pakistan are closed due to lack of funding because government make policies in universities and after making policies for universities government ensure the vice chancellors of universities that government provide all facilities to the poor students But ,in fact it is not come true. In many schools of Pakistan lack of furniture’s, proper rooms, play grounds, staffrooms, and arrangements for portable water, sanitary workers, support staff ,peons and security guards. It was reported in express tribune (March 24, 2012) that ***â€Å"According to a Free and Fair Election Network (Fafen) report released that, 95 boys’ primary schools out of 161 monitored across 85 districts in January were found to be without playgrounds. In addition, 74 schools were without chairs for students, while 35 did not have any furniture for teachers and 118 schools had no staffroom. As many as 38 schools had no arrangements for potable water and only eight had sanitary workers. Other support staff – peons and security guards – was present only in 48 schools. However, classrooms in 133 schools were found to be clean despite the unavailability of sanitary workers. Also, 129 schools had electricity connections but only 16 had well-lit classrooms. Fans were availab le in classrooms of 128 schools.† No politician in Pakistan paid attention in improving the level of education system. Politicians are no better rights to involve in education system and now this time our education system reflect with this fact. Public education system needs a new wall without the interference of political leaders. Bureaucracy is falling to reform in education because they are unaware of educational system. It was posted in Dawn newspaper that ****â€Å"In Timergara (Lower Dir.), July 25 various teachers organizations have called for an end to political interference in the district education department† Students political wings like (IJT, PSF, APMSO) etc. in many universities creates very problems in educational institutes. The fight between different student wings in university creates problem like during their fight university academic system is badly affected. Sometime university is closed for one or many weeks and this is not a good sign. In fact, it is the failures of university administration and also provincial and federal government. In Pakistan there is â€Å"Chaudhary† and â€Å"Wad era† system of education. It means that in many villages of Pakistan the children of the poor study in government schools, small and without facility in village schools they work very hard but when big people (Chaudhary and wad era) see that poor’s child work very hard and want to become equal with them then they threat him with different methods.it indicate that in Pakistan there is no rights of poor people to get education and become equal with rich people. Poverty is also one of the biggest fact that stops the parents to send their children to private schools.so they without take any steps prefer to send their children to government schools where the education is not much more satisfactory. Without money families are unable to send their children to schools and bear uniforms and other expenditures. Free primary education is a human right but in Pakistan it is only free in government sectors which is not satisfactory primary education. Finally, government should take steps for the improvement of education system and spend money for the improvement of primary, secondary and higher education and also increase the budget for education. More Schools, colleges, universities, medical and engineering colleges are needed to be open. More attention must be given to scientific and technical education so that more students come in these fields. Subjects relevant teachers should be enter as soon as possible. Politics should be finished from education. Students also pay full attention on their study. Full rights to get education should be given to women so that they should come equal with men. If government not take steps we should stand for it until all problems will not finish. Allah Almighty said in Quran in surah Raad (13) verse 11 that â€Å"It is a fact that Allah does not change the condition of a people unless they bring about a change in their own selves†. These are all hopes how to improve our education system? But who will come among us to eliminate these problems? References *http://www.mediapoint.pk/study-defence-and-education-budget-of-pakistan/ ** http://dawn.com/news/166719/karachi-student-activists-beat-up-teacher-ku-faculty-members-protest-today *** http://tribune.com.pk/story/354172/report-public-schools-lacking-furniture-playgrounds/ ****http://dawn.com/news/1031980/political-interference-in-education-dept-opposed Name Hamza Naeem Group 3 Department EEE Instructor Name Mr.Zameer Nawaz Namal college, Mianwali

LaSalle :: essays research papers

La Salle La Salle, Renà ©-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de (1643-1687), French explorer in North America, who navigated the length of the Mississippi River and claimed the Louisiana region for France. La Salle was born on November 22, 1643, in Rouen, France, and educated by the Jesuits. In 1666 he immigrated to Canada, was granted land on the St. Lawrence River, and became a trader. From 1669 to 1670 he explored the region south of Lakes Ontario and Erie, and he later claimed to have discovered the Ohio River in 1671. In the course of his explorations in the wilderness, La Salle became familiar with indigenous languages and traditions. Because of his capabilities, French colonial governor Louis de Buade, comte de Palluau et de Frontenac, appointed him commander of Fort Frontenac, then being built as a trading station. In 1674 La Salle was sent to France as Frontenac's representative to justify the building of the fort. His mission was successful, and he received a patent of nobility. La Salle subsequently conceived a plan for exploring and trading farther west, and in 1677 he again visited France to secure royal approval of his scheme. He returned with Italian explorer Henri de Tonty, who became his associate. In 1679 he set out on a preliminary expedition, and after establishing forts at the mouth of the Saint Joseph River and along the Illinois River, in February 1680, he sent a group to explore the upper Mississippi River. La Salle then returned to Fort Frontenac to procure new supplies and funds. By spring he was able to travel west again, and he and Tonty proceeded with their party of French and indigenous peoples to the Mississippi, which they descended to the Gulf of Mexico in 1682, claiming all the land drained by the river for Louis XIV, king of France, and naming the region Louisiana. La Salle subsequently commenced construction of forts in the new territory. When Frontenac was recalled to France later in 1682, however, La Salle's rivals succeeded in turning the new governor against him. Journeying to France in 1683, La Salle made a successful appeal to the king, who commended him for his discoveries and named him viceroy of North America. In 1684 he sailed from France with a fleet of four ships on an expedition to establish a colony at the mouth of the Mississippi River. When he reached the Gulf of Mexico he was unable to find the Mississippi,

Essay --

Chris Nguyen Xxxxxx Xxxxxx 27 December 2013 Socialization and Stigmatization of HIV/ AIDS in Developing and Developed Societies: A Comparative Survey of Selected Recent Literature Introduction In the last thirty years the social perception of HIV/ AIDS has changed dramatically in the public conscious. The disease itself has shifted from being a baffling virus in the 1960s and 1970s, to the offensively termed â€Å"Gay-related immune deficiency† or GRID, to finally being termed the Human Immune-deficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the 1980s. Despite scientific advances in modern medicine, the perception of the illness is still highly sexualized and carries a deeply negative stigma, especially in economically developing societies. In this paper I will analyze a selection of current literature to gain understanding of how HIV/ AIDS first came into existence and how it was initially perceived in the public conscious. From this same pool of recent literature I will examine sub-Saharan African societies, specifically cases in Tanzania and South Africa, as well as the socio-politic al context surrounding HIV/ AIDS governance in present-day China. In contrast, I will also draw from an article that discusses stigma experienced by HIV-positive women living in Canada- a developed society. Despite the reams of scientific literature on the subject, public consciousness about living with HIV/ AIDS and preventing its transmission in developing and developed societies remains low. Cultural and Socio-political Perceptions of HIV Infection Modern perceptions of HIV and AIDS are driven by archaic and outdated social stigma that has existed since the discovery ... ...gical sense. Obviously people observe different cultures and norms across all of the world’s societies. In order to address a common problem across uncommon environments, problem-solvers must seek-out culturally appropriate means and methods for confronting any given issue. HIV and AIDS- related stigma is a problem that has plagued social society since the discovery of the illness. Even the most developed societies like Canada are not immune to prejudice and bias. As such, much responsibility falls upon educated people to share the importance of sexual and reproductive health with those who may not have access to the same level of quality education. While history has already written bias and stigma into the lives of those who have lived and continue to live with HIV or AIDS, the phenomenon of bias can be understood. And with understanding comes the hope for change.

The Parmenidean Paradox Of Motion Essay -- essays research papers

Philosophical thought begins with the Milesians, where intellectual curiosity propelled thinkers like Anaximander and Heraclitus to attempt to explain the phenomena of the universe by means of specific physical elements. During the 6th century BC, Eleatics, like Parmenides and Zeno, had rejected physical phenomena and propounded metaphysical paradoxes that cut at the roots of belief in the very existence of the natural world. Parmenides uproots the theories of his predecessors by bearing to light the logical possibilities of any philosophical inquiry. He argues that that the only things about which we can inquire about must exist, else our search is fruitless. Through deductive reasoning, Parmenides proves that if something exists, then it cannot come to be or perish, change or move, nor be the subject to any imperfection. His proteges were left with an enormous problem: how could one reconcile Parmenides’ rejection of change with the possibility of giving a rational account of the changing world of sense experience? By accepting only certain parts of his doctrine of being, his successors ultimately fail in their attempts to explain the changing universe in light of the Parmenidean paradox. How does Parmenides draw the conclusion that if something is, then it is unchanging? A more formal examination of his arguments regarding subjects of inquiry shows how he comes to the conclusion that all is one. The only ways of inquiry there are for thinking: the one, that it is and that it is not possible for it not to be, is the path of Persuasion (for it attends upon the Truth), the other, that it is not and that it is necessary for it not to be, this I point out to you to be a path completely unlearnable, for neither may you know that which is not (for it is not to be accomplished) nor may you declare it (Curd fr.2 ll.3-8, pg.45). Parmenides’ subject of inquiry, as show in the fragment, either you must assume that your subject is or it is not. Careful consideration of the statement ‘is not’ shows that it is impossible to point out what does not exist, because it has no attributes or true predicate. Parmenides concludes that if something does not exist, then its non-existence cannot allow for it to come into being or perishing, because if it comes to be, then formally, it previously did not exist. Since we cannot know anything about things that do not exist, coming... ...rmenidean doctrine that substances are uncreated and eternal; however, by positing that there are four creative and two controlling substances, he dubiously maintains that combination and separation, through their endless cycles bring about a whole. If Empedocles were to follow the Parmenidean notion of being absolutely, then his separation and combination would never take place, because each element would be continuously attracted and negated, so that no combination could ever take place.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Pluralists want to reconcile everything that they perceive through their senses with the Parmenidean idea of an uncreated, eternal, unchanging whole. The problem of such a task lies in the fact that Parmenides’ notion of being goes against everything that our sense experience tells us. With our eyes we see motion and change every day, be it our own self-motion or that of others around us. Furthermore, we experience coming-into-being and perishing through the cycle of birth and death. The Pluralists would had made better progress in extrapolating their own ideas if they would have either sided completely with Parmenides or taken means to discredit his work.

Bartleby the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street

Bartleby the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street is one of the most famous short stories written by world renowned author Herman Melville. John Self in his article in The Asylum describes the book as a keystone of modern literature. Published anonymously in November and December of 1853, it was again reprinted in The Piazza Tales in 1856.Much as it is a classic, it still baffles a lot of critics and have been subjected to various interpretations by many. The story of Bartleby continues to live on and tells of a story that is honest and profound.The best interpretation of the story which is deeply rooted in the cultural and actual economic makings of the United States is the theme that exploits the rise of capitalism during the time prior to the writing of the story. This makes the story something that is relevant and makes it a faithful account of the realities of the society during that development in the US economy. The economic transformation that happened did not only modernize the country but also affected the psyche of the working class as well as the personal relationship between employers and employees.The Wall Street being a major element of the story and considering the fact that it is currently one of the financial hubs of the US, one can assume that the author has a good eye for future financial potential. Allan Moore Emery, in his article â€Å"The Alternatives of Melville's Bartleby†, praises Herman Melville in his scholarly use of philosophy, theology and actual sources as he injected them with subtlety into his work. To have a thorough grasp of the the theme, one has to dissect the different elements in the story to see a clearer picture of how it relates to capitalism.The story is narrated by a lawyer who has a business of taking care of mortagages, bonds, and title deeds of wealthy men. This alone showcases the proliferation of real estates and high rise buildings during that time in New York creating a financial market that involves the employment of lawyers by men to protect their assets and properties. This further emphasizes that capitalists have acquired capital and required proper documentation for ease of business transactions. In the story, the lawyer already employs 2 scriveners, Nippers and Turkey, who copy legal documents by hand.He also has Ginger Nut who works as the office errand boy. The author in a way does not give specific details into his personal description of his characters making them all the more interesting and intriguing. However, it is notable how the author refers to his staff using nicknames and not by their formal given names. One can assume of the impersonal relationship of the lawyers with his workers. Here, the dominance felt by the upper classes is accentuated because of the actuations of the lawyer being the top person in the ladder.He feels that because he is the one paying the salary of his employees, he has power over them inside the office. He describes them in a manner that is not very flattering. He comments that though Turkey works well in the morning, his output deteriorates in the afternoon. Opposite is the case for Nipper, who because of his indigestion, works better in the afternoon than in the morning. Ginger Nut was given the nickname because he was always asked to fetch Ginger Nut cakes for the two scriveners. Here, Melville has a stab at humor to hide the sarcasm that is evident in the descriptions.The lawyer though pointing out the quality of his men's work always has a critique for their work attitude. He points out their malfunctions but never even admitting any shortcomings from his side. The different characters of the employees are a representation of the structure in a capitalist environment. The staff embodies a work force that have little room for advancement and working on monotonous tasks that takes a lot of patience in the long run. To cope with the intellectual dead end, one can be physically affected or find short means of escape to fathom the same work everyday.Thus, the break in the output of the lawyer's staff is their way of coping with the stress of monotony. The story then further unfolds in the introduction of Bartleby who was hired by the lawyer to act as a third scrivener because of his growing business. Bartleby's disposition can be described as eccentric and forlorn. A lot of the critics cannot help themselves to compare the attitude of Bartleby to Herman Melville. When Melville wrote this, it was a time in his life that he was also experiencing depression because of the failure of his work â€Å"Moby Dick†.A lot of the readers assumed that he probably patterned the character of Bartleby to his own (SparkNotes Editors). Bartleby appeared to be a satisactory worker with quality output as is characteristic of new hired employees in an industrial setting. The day came when he said the famous line that was the turning point of the whole story. When asked to proofread a copied document Bartleby said, â€Å"I would prefer not to† (Melville 18). This astounded the lawyer but made him more curious of the personality of Bartleby.In the normal business world of today, one only has to finish the sentence before being escorted out by security. In the story, Bartleby was not fired right away because the lawyer entertained the throught of compassion and considered Bartleby as a charity case. He further mentions how he found out that his stubborn scrivener lives and eats in his office. This may be interpreted as showing that the employer's feel that their employees are dependent on them for their immediate needs. This clearly shows the capitalist idea that the working class are being fed by their hands.Bartleby's outright refusal is symbolic of his impertinence to be a slave to capitalism. Melville skillfully outlined how Bartleby gave up his work entirely and chose to do nothing. This is suggestive of his rejection to conform to the exploitative nature of capitalists. The co nflict that arised between Bartleby and his collegues is imminent in the actual workplace. It shows of the struggles between individuals who have different views. It separates those who are management underdogs from those who are courageous enough to effect change.Turkey and Nippers' agitation at Bartleby is evident of their clear imprisonment to their dependency on their work and their inability to do something about it because of their age and probably their destroyed morale. Eventually, because of the exhaustion felt by the lawyer to the antics of Bartleby, he decided to leave his office. Bartleby created a ruckus in the old office because of his refusal to move out and was eventually taken by the police and imprisoned. This shows how property rights were strongly enforced during that time.Furthermore, Bartleby's act of sleeping on the corridors gives more emphasis on the gap between the capitalist and the working class. Though the lawyer tried to offer his house to Bartleby, one cannot be sure of the sincerity of it. One can interpret this as a way of pacification to alleviate the current condition of Bartleby. The capitalists often sugar coat their intentions to bribe and make the working class feel that there is something good that they can offer back. If Bartleby agreed on the lawyer's terms, he knew that it would be for a fee.He recognized this outright which made him refuse the offer. The lawyer's additional act of compassion despite Bartleby's indifference was to make sure that Bartleby was well fed in the prison. It seems that because of the growing capitalist power, they were able to form laws and punishments that will inhibit the obstinate acts of the workers but making it still appear moral by finding means of appeasing them as what is shown by the act of the lawyer. It is a way of paying for their conscience rather than a genuine act of compassion.The death of Bartleby is an abrupt end that provided yet another open interpretation from the reade rs. His refusal to eat the food offered him is an act of self-preservation wherein until his last breath, he never allowed to get swallowed by the capitalist power and died with his principles intact. The story ends with the lawyer's uncovering of Bartleby's past. Bartleby used to work in a Dead Letter Office and the lawyer assumed that this was the cause of Bartleby's absurd behavior. It is arrogant of the lawyer to assume this without further knowledge of the real story behind Bartleby's life.It may be that his depression was not caused by the nature of his former work but the mere closing of it. The change of administration that was the alleged cause of the Dead Letter Office's closing is symbolic of the capitalist's rise in power paving the way for a structure that is discriminate of the working class. In closing, Bartleby's sruggle is reminiscent of an era that shaped the current working environment and tells of a story that is not aimed for confusion but for intellectual furth erance. Works Cited Emery, Allan Moore.â€Å"The Alternatives of Melville's Bartleby†. California: The University of California Press, 1976. Melville, Herman. â€Å"Bartleby the Scrivener†. Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University, 2002. Self, John. â€Å"Herman Melville: Bartleby the Scrivener†. The Asylum. 7 June 2010 < http://theasylum. wordpress. com/2009/05/21/herman-melville-bartleby-the-scrivener/ SparkNotes Editors. â€Å"SparkNote on Melville Stories. † SparkNotes. com. SparkNotes LLC. n. d. 7 Jun. 2010.

Leadership Development Plan Essay

Section 1: What is Leadership and What Kind of Leader are You? Leadership means influencing others towards a common goal. This was how I viewed leadership ten weeks prior, before I started this online class. The definition itself stems from experiences brought about by memberships of the Junior Jaycees, university student councils and medical organizations. Extracting the definition comes easily. It may be correct but not necessarily complete. It is implementing it that’s tricky. Previously, I viewed leadership as it is in a box. A common goal is handed out to you. Then you’ll have to pick out which roads to travel to reach that goal. There was no formal training. At the conclusion of this course, the leadership definition above still holds true. But it is not as it is in a box anymore. It’s like trying your hand at golf. You may score a hole-in-one without perfecting your swing. But crafting your swing based on appropriate training and stance would definitely increase your chances of achieving that hole-in-one. The journey towards that coveted hole-in-one would be more meaningful as it would be objectively guided. According to Dan Clark1, â€Å"Leadership is a process by which a person influences others to accomplish an objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent†. Based on this definition and the concepts learned during the course, I would view myself as using more of the ‘transformational’ leadership style with a tinge of ‘transactional’, and just currently implementing the ‘empowering’ style. Transformational leadership entails inspiration and the conversion of a follower’s motivational state.3 I have always evoked inspiration as a leader, ever since I started taking responsibilities in small organizations in high school. This was how I managed to extract a good outcome out of the members. The transactional aspect just came into existence on an accidental discovery. Having been raised frugal, I used to just purchase myself a warm creamy Starbucks coffee on a really bad day as a pick-me-up. When I felt good after a sweet sip at the start of the day, I noticed my productivity increased. So, I bought some for my staff. It was the best day ever at work. Everyone shared a smile despite the high workload and stress. This also strengthened my bond with the staff. They viewed the free morning gourmet coffee as a personal reward. So once in a while, I give out incentives to staff to boost up their creativity and efficiency. That small gesture of a gourmet coffee led to gift cards, birthday party celebrations, etc. On the other hand, the empowering style of my leadership has just been developed during this course. It is indeed a new concept and is a work in progress. It does make sense. Not only would I be able to delegate tasks to the members, but this would also foster ownership and further training for them. Empowering the staff would increase their self-esteem, skills and productivity. There is a lot of overlap between the leadership styles and collaborative leadership. According to The Community Toolbox by the University of Kansas2, the traits of collaborative leadership can be summarized as follows: †¢ Collaborative problem-solving and decision-making. It’s not the leader’s job to decide what to do and then tell the group. Rather, the group considers the problem, decides what to do, and counts on the leader to help them focus their effort . †¢ Open process. The leader, or some other interested party, doesn’t just start with his goals in mind and steer the group in that direction. Collaborative leadership means that the process of decision-making is truly collaborative, and has no set end-point when it begins. The end result is worked out among all the participants: that’s collaboration. †¢ Leadership of the process, rather than the group. The purpose of collaborative leadership is to help the collaborative process work, rather than to lead the people involved toward something – to a particular decision, for instance, or in a particular direction. For me, ‘collaboration’ is taking all of the leadership styles mentioned above and gently infusing them into your members’ style, so that they would be leaders in their own small fields as well. This would definitely not unfold itself overnight but would definitely entail tons of patience and training, as well as rewards. With these concepts, equipped with the course discussions and readings, which were applied to experiences in the past, present and the future, led me to the discovery of my own authentic leadership. We all have the capacity to inspire and empower others, but we must first be willing to devote ourselves to our personal growth and development as leaders4 to attain success. How we lead others is indeed a product of our life stories and hardships. It is for this reason that finding out your own authentic leadership should begin with awareness of self and the environment. In lieu to this, the leadership development plan would serve as the first step towards discovering my authentic leadership. The objectives of this leadership and development plan are as follows: a) Based on the assessment questionnaires done, on top of the concepts learned in class, I would be able to increase my awareness of self and environment, acknowledging my strengths and weaknesses. b) By summarizing the concepts significant to my situation, I would be able to discover my current leadership style and modify or develop it as best as possible according to what I have learned. c) I would be able to create a specific action plan towards the development of my authentic leadership style. d) I would be able to apply the modified leadership style on a real-life situation. By preparing this leadership and development plan, I hope to achieve the objectives as listed above. This would serve as my unbiased guide as I embark on my most significant real-life leadership journey, which actual ly started a few weeks ago. Section 2: Lessons Learned This course has defined some previously unknown leadership traits and taught me lessons that would be valuable tools for the development of my authentic leadership style. I have summarized them as follows: a) Awareness of self and environment Awareness of self and the environment have been recurrent themes during the whole course. I should agree that I have unfolded some layers of myself as the weeks went by. I have repositioned myself in my career environment differently. Working as a primary care physician and opening up a new private practice during the current economic environment requires a lot of courage. The Obamacare health plans have recently reduced reimbursements to physicians. Although some positive changes are already in effect, health insurances still remain a huge business industry in which patients and physicians fall victims of. Having a Protean Career Orientation, and being aware of it through the assessment questionnaires, provided a cushion against these changes. Nothing provides more reassurance than knowing that regardless of how difficult the business climate might be, my boundaryless career orientation would somehow survive and prosper. Of course, the latter depends on the subjective definition of success. Having filled out the â€Å"Meaning of Career and Life Success† questionnaires helped confirm what matters to me as I find my way through this journey. Helping other people, achieving a work/life balance and personal growth have been consistent in what I want in life and career. This is important because the health care system for physicians has been very rigid. With a young career, as mine, most of my colleagues resort to being employed and managed by hospitals or larger private groups. It is not financially conducive to open up a private practice at the onset. So, I am technically swimming against an opposite current, and the lessons from the readings have pushed me into moving forward despite of. I do not deny, of course, that there would be tough moments when I sometimes get tempted to choose the easy path and revisit the generous employment offers I had. When this does occur, the Protean trait comes in handy and muffles out all doubts and anxiety. b) Leadership style/vision In a few weeks, I will be managing a business on my own. This definitely requires a multitude of organizational skills. As much as I have already implemented most of the lessons learned in this course, I would still be requiring the assistance of and probably revisit these reviews most often. The transition from being an employee to embracing an employer status would surely extract all the leadership qualities that I could muster. First off, I envision myself as a collaborative leader, making more use of the transformational as well as empowering leadership styles with a tinge of transactional method as well. The balance of these techniques depends on every situation I would encounter. Empowering others and myself has been one of my strengths, mainly because helping out and teaching have always been my calling. This would definitely come in handy when I exercise these different leadership styles. Furthermore, I also want to be a leader who would embrace technology and use all resources available in my grasp for the betterment of the organization. Currently, social media has done away with geographical barriers. When used appropriately, it would also bridge the cultural gap and communication barriers within the company. I wonder what the outcome would be if I implement a supervised â€Å"facebook/twitter† equivalent among the staff and management, tapping into hidden resources and skills within the group. In my line of business, I want recommendations from patients and staff heard. But because the latter sometimes become hesitant to give out ideas, it is difficult to pry their walls open unless they feel comfortable to expose themselves. That would be interesting to see. I bet there are still tons of instances when you can make technology work for you. I would want to be that kind of leader who listens to those needs/changes and responds appropriately, with or without technology. On the other hand, aside from leading with both the head and the heart, I also want to lead by example. I have been raised with a solid Catholic foundation and ethics. I want to employ this kind of culture in my organization and allow it to trickle down to the staff as well. I have seen a lot of employer physicians take advantage of employed doctors due to monetary benefits. There is nothing wrong about prioritizing the balance sheets and net profits, as long as you have not crossed the ethical boundary lines. Business should be practiced with a conscience. c) Leadership behavior changes When work demands increase, I find myself accidentally encroaching on family life. This is why the readings on work/life balance impacted me the most. The assessment questionnaires on this topic realigned my priorities. My husband and I, both physicians, strive so hard to give our two young children the quality time they deserve. From the onset, I have done away with inpatient practice and just focused on working in an outpatient setting with no weekend calls. Although most of the time, office hours go beyond the usual 8am-6pm schedule, as we tend to finish patient charts on time and actually sometimes bring work home. From the lessons learned, I have learned to balance work/life more in terms of quality and quantity of time. Instead of restricting my kids’ schedule and designing it to accommodate mine more, I have given up some activities that would take away parent time. For instance, instead of attending a dinner lecture presentation for continuing medical education, I would just spend this time with my family and read up on the topic whenever I can during work time. Another topic that brought great impact to me was on managing the boss. As a leader, you have to stay in tune to the needs of your superiors as well as your subordinates. The lessons learned from these readings were an eye-opener. I have experienced instances when I went beyond the employed physician job description. The intentions were noble as I saw opportunities for improvements. However, my superiors took these the wrong way. Awkward relationships would have been avoided then. Now I definitely know better.

Homelessness: What We Can Do About It

â€Å"Being homeless is often defined as sleeping on the streets. Although this is the most visible and severe form of homelessness, there are many other types of acute housing need. These include living in temporary accommodation, poor or overcrowded conditions, or being in mortgage arrears and under threat of re-possession. † (Hope, 27) It is a symptom of many complex problems: mental illness, emotional instability, illiteracy, chronic substance abuse, unemployment, and, most basic of all, the breakdown of city planning. Anyone can become homeless and the reasons that force people into homelessness are many and varied. The leading cause, however, of homelessness in the United States is the inability of poor people to afford housing. â€Å"Housing costs have risen significantly over the last decade, while the incomes of poor and middle-class Americans have stagnated. † (Erickson, 169) The millions of Americans who are unemployed or work in low-paying jobs are among the most vulnerable to becoming homeless. Therefore, homelessness, housing, and income are inextricably linked. Low-income people are frequently unable to pay for housing, food, child-care, health care, and education. Difficult choices must be made when limited resources cover only some of these necessities. Often it is housing, which takes a high proportion of income that must be dropped. Two major sources of income are from employment and public assistance. A decrease in either one of them would certainly put poor people at risk of homelessness. Additionally, minimum wage earnings no longer lift families above the poverty line. More than 3 million poor Americans spend more than half of their total income on housing, yet the Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates families should spend no more than 30%. † (Gilbert, 84) Although many homeless adults are employed, they work in day-labor jobs that do not meet basic needs, while technological acceleration excludes others from a competitive job market. Many factors have contributed to declining work opportunities for large segments of the workforce, including the loss of well-paying manufacturing jobs. The decline in relatively secure and well-paying jobs in manufacturing, which have been replaced by less secure and poorly-paid jobs in the service sector, has greatly limited the opportunities for poorly-educated and low-skilled segments of the population. This transformation has led to an unprecedented incidence of chronic unemployment and underemployment. (Hardin, 379) â€Å"Underemployment is an especially useful measure of the decline in secure jobs since, unlike the unemployment rate, measures of underemployment reflect not only individuals who are unemployed, but also involuntary part-timers and those who have given up seeking work. (Hardin, 263) In addition to increasing underemployment, an estimated 29. 4% of the workforce are employed in nonstandard work arrangements, for example, independent contracting, working for a temporary help agency, day labor, and regular part-time employment. These kinds of work arrangements typically offer lower wages, fewer benefits, and less job security. â€Å"As recently as 1967, a year-round worker earning the minimum wage was paid enough to raise a family of three above the poverty line† (Sklar, 103). From 1981-1990, however, â€Å"the minimum wage was frozen at $3. 5 an hour, while the cost of living increased 48% over the same period. Congress raised the minimum wage to $5. 15 per hour in 1996. This increase made up only slightly more than half of the ground lost to inflation in the 1980s† (Hardin, 191). Thus, full-time year-round minimum-wage earnings currently not equal to the estimated poverty line for a family of three. Unsurprisingly, the decline in the value of the minimum wage has been accompanied by an increase in the number of people earning poverty-level wages and the declining wages have put housing out of reach for many workers, in every state. Slashed public assistance has also left many people homeless or at risk of homelessness. Replacement of the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) entitlement program, a program that was already inadequate in meeting the needs of families, with the non-entitlement block grant program would significantly increase the risk of homelessness for many Americans. Furthermore, earned income and asset limitations discourage individuals and families from breaking the cycle of homelessness and extreme poverty. Several states have terminated or reduced public assistance and food stamps for individuals, while Social Security Income (SSI) is inadequate, and sometimes impossible to obtain, for disabled individuals. As a result, the number of poor Americans is growing and the poor are getting poorer. Across America, there has been a substantial decline in the number of housing units that low-income people and those in need of shelter assistance can afford. Those losses have resulted primarily from downtown urban renewal, gentrification, abandonment, and suburban land use controls. The elimination and reduction of federal low income housing programs has also dramatically reduced the supply of affordable shelter. Moreover, construction of low income and assisted housing has essentially stopped. Due to the increased demand and diminished supply of housing or shelter, the problem of homelessness is further deteriorated. The amount of housing available in the private sector rental stock is diminishing rapidly. As more and more landlords abandon apartment buildings and houses rather than repair them, the housing supply for the poor has declined at an accelerating pace in some cities in the nation. The growth of service-sector employment in central business districts has attracted white-collar professionals, many of whom prefer to live in accessible central city neighborhoods, where they compete with poor, indigenous residents for private market housing (Noyelle, 210). The result is frequently gentrification of inner city housing which traditionally has been the major source of low- income housing. At the same time, downtown service sector expansion has created jobs for many low-waged workers, which increases the demand for low cost shelter readily accessible to the downtown. It makes the homeless in downtown even harder to rent a place to live. Downtown development also diminishes the supply of low-income housing for poor people. As the City raises more new office towers, the vacancy for housing is getting less. In Seattle, for instance, office space in downtown grew from 13 million square feet in 1981 to about 24 million square feet in 1990. On the other hand, the downtown low-income housing stock declined from about 11,000 units in 1980 to less than 6,000 units in 1987. With the passage of new housing levies, cities will try to regain some low income units, but today s low-income units vanish faster than they can be built and there is still a shortage in housing supply in downtown areas. Besides, the qualities of temporary shelters for homeless people are terrible that they think staying on streets is a better choice. Not only have the lost bed-spaces not been made up, but the new hostels are not as readily accessible to the homeless coming directly off the street. They tend to cater to special-needs groups and access tends to be through referral. Planners can play an important role in the search for solutions to homelessness. And homelessness is an extensive, complex process. Different kinds of intervention are needed to deal with the problem. But the most widely accepted approach is a three-tier system, beginning with emergency shelters and moving through transitional accommodations to long-term housing. Rehabilitation of old buildings by minimal funding are common projects to provide shelters for the homeless people. However, some observers suggests that making the renovation of buildings for low-income housing profitable, for developers or investors, can be the solution to the homeless problem. Our examination makes it clear that piecemeal intervention can alleviate emergency shelter crises, but such action will not resolve the long-term problem of finding permanent shelter for the homeless and returning them to the mainstream of society wherever possible, which we regard as the ultimate goal of intervention. Equally obvious is that while long-term intervention strategies are vital, they do not address the problems of survival for those presently without shelter and support. We conclude that both long-term and short-term measures are necessary, but that all the solutions should be based on integrated, comprehensive understanding of the homelessness problem. Only such a comprehensive approach will allow planners to develop workable strategies with any chance for success.